


With Conviction

by profound-boning (farawaystardust)



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Historical, Alternate Universe - Royalty, Fairytale elements, Happy Ending, Love at First Sight, M/M, POV Alternating, Past Character Death, spoilers in author's note
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-04
Updated: 2019-04-04
Packaged: 2020-01-04 15:07:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,201
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18346133
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/farawaystardust/pseuds/profound-boning
Summary: Once upon a time, a simple encounter changes the course of two boys’ lives forever.It all begins at the market.





	With Conviction

**Author's Note:**

  * For [iCeDreams](https://archiveofourown.org/users/iCeDreams/gifts).



> Thanks to my giftee iCeDreams for being so lovely, I hope you enjoy your fic! It grew into a monster on me. Plot is fully spoiled in the author's note at the end to avoid putting spoilers in the tags!

Once upon a time, a simple encounter changes the course of two boys’ lives forever.

It all begins at the market. Cas makes his way through the bustling crowd easily. There is fresh bread at this stall as well as sweets, which he knows his father enjoys very much. When he purchases the vegetables his mother asked for, he also gets himself an apple. Biting into the ripe fruit, he looks around and plans where he might walk next.

Then, suddenly, he hears a commotion at a nearby stall.

“Wait, no, wait!” a young man shrieks. That grimy bastard Alastair is holding his arm tightly, the pale skin of his delicate forearm clearly visible. “I wasn’t stealing!”

Alastair laughs. “Sure you weren’t. I’ve half a mind to take your hand either way and then it’s a warning for you and a trophy for me.”

“Sir, I’ve no need to steal your wares, I wasn’t stealing. But-but I will pay you for them if it pleases you.” The boy tries to tug his arm away but he can’t, his eyes are wide and terrified.

 _“If it pleases me,”_ Alastair mocks him. Then, his eyes move up and down his figure lecherously. Cas can’t really see anything beneath the huge cloak, but he’s clearly a fit young man in his twenties. “Y’know what would please me…”

“Leave him alone.” Cas inserts himself between them, glaring. “Don’t you have better things to do, old man?” He represses a shiver at the way Alastair had been leering.

Alastair just sneers at him. “Mind your own damn business.”

“And you pick on someone your own size. Otherwise, it’s just embarrassing.” Cas scoffs and ushers the stranger away as quickly as he thinks they can escape. After a few steps, he takes the other man’s hand in his and tugs him down a narrow alleyway. When they emerge on the other side, he turns sharply and walks them briskly through another section of the market, not stopping until they reach the fountain. There, he finds them a place to sit on the edge of the basin.

He sits first and finally gets a chance to look at the person he’s just removed from Alastair’s clutches. He’s just a boy, really, can’t be any older than Cas himself. He’s pale with freckled skin and a pair of green eyes, wide and soft, above his perfectly straight nose and rosebud lips. No wonder he’s wearing a hooded cloak in the summer heat, this boy would’ve attracted attention from any of the more nefarious salesmen at the marketplace if more people had seen his beautiful face.

Cas realizes that he’s been staring and he tries not to blush. He gestures to the space next to him and is grateful when the other boy sits there. He seems to be staring right back.

“Hi,” the boy finally says. “Thank you.”

“Oh, it was nothing. Guy’s a creep.”

“Yeah.” His smile might be the prettiest one Cas has ever seen. “I… Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. My name is Cas.”

His nose scrunches with what Cas thinks might be confusion. “Cas, huh? Is that a nickname?”

“No, not as far as I know, anyway. I've been just Cas my whole life.”

The boy grins at him. “Well, I believe it suits you.”

Cas returns the smile, feeling warm in the summer sunshine sitting next to the cutest boy in the kingdom. “So, will you tell me your name and what brings you to these parts?” he asks. “I feel like I would remember having met you before.”

“O-oh,” the boy stammers, looking shocked. “I’m…Dean.”

“Are you sure?” Cas laughs at his hesitation. It just earns him another crooked grin.

“Yes, I’m Dean. Pleased to meet you.” He extends his hand to Cas, who takes it, shaking it vigorously between his own. “And I live…a ways away, I don’t often get the opportunity to visit the market.”

“Really?” Cas says. “That’s a shame. I insist on showing you all of the best vendors, then, if this is to be our only meeting.”

“I hope that it is not,” Dean says softly, shyly, and Cas feels overwhelmed with joy. Beaming, he stands and takes Dean’s hand back.

“Come on then, there’s a lot to see!”

:     :     :     :     :

Dean hoists himself over the railing of his balcony, panting with the effort. This damned cloak was far too hot to wear outside today, but there’s no way to avoid wearing it. If he were to be caught…

“So.” The voice startles him badly and Dean almost hits his head on the hard stone. His little brother Sam is leaning against the huge glass door with a stormy expression on his face. “Had fun today, did you?”

“Sammy.” Dean rushes to his side, looking past him into his chambers. “What’s going on?”

“You snuck out again!” He hits Dean in the shoulder with all of the force a scrawny fourteen-year-old can muster. “If Mom saw you, she’d be so mad.”

“And that’s why we’re _not going to tell her,_ isn’t that right, string bean?”

“Ugh!” Sam pushes him away and stomps into the room, knocking one of Dean’s books off of the couch in order to throw himself down on it dramatically. “You never let me come with you but you always want me to lie for you and it isn’t fair!”

Dean winces. “Look short stuff, you can come with me when you’re older. When I’m king, you can do whatever the hell you want. But right now we’re both a little trapped here. And I gotta watch my own back out there. I don’t want anything to happen to you.”

Sam pouts some more but Dean knows he just needs time. He knows that Sam doesn’t like being cooped up any more than he does.

“What do you say we go riding tomorrow?” he says, watching Sam fight the oncoming smile at his words.

“Just you and me?”

“Bobby’s allowed it before. We could ask him to go to the Western Wood again.”

“Let’s do that.” Sam nods decisively. “Did you see anything interesting today?”

Dean thinks about a gorgeous boy with blue eyes who held his hand all morning and he says no.

:     :     :     :     :

When Cas wakes up the following day, the clouds make everything look dreary. His mother will insist on getting his chores done early, starting with tending to the crops and flowers before any rain starts to fall.

He does it without complaint. Anything that he can do for his aging parents is, well, it’s his duty. He doesn’t get tired as they do, his body is young enough to do anything around their home or on their land.

His father takes the horse and the wagon to various towns as often as he can, selling what excess foods they have and well as his artistic renderings. Cas has watched his father carve wood and manipulate leather into pieces that are sometimes beautiful and sometimes practical in their purpose. He often sits by the fire alongside him and mimics him, trying his best to bring beauty into the world.

Charles and Rebecca are good, hard-working folk. Gray-haired and warm, they exude love and kindness toward all. They’ve taken in stray animals and weary travelers, they help their neighbors, and they have never treated Cas poorly.

And yet…

Some days, Cas can’t help but feel like there’s something _missing._ On those days, he wakes up feeling an ache in his back and a hole in his chest. There’s no pain, just a wistful sort of sadness, a longing for something that he doesn’t have a name for, actually.

He’s never mentioned it to them. Just like he never mentions the dreams.

Some nights, Cas has these fantastic dreams. He flies, soaring high above the clouds and the earth and the sea are far below him. The sun shines on him and his brilliant white wings, which carry him effortlessly. He’s never seen his destination, he only knows that he tries to reach it, night after night, without success. He always wakes up before he sees it.

Cas had a happy childhood and he never wanted for anything. His life isn’t easy by any means but he doesn’t complain. He thinks over all of this as he tills the soil, brown dirt moving easily beneath his tools.

When he comes inside for lunch, his mother kisses his cheek with gratitude. They eat quietly and, as predicted, the rain begins to fall. It’s gentle at first but soon becomes a storm.

Within the hour, his father arrives at home. They are surprised to see that he isn’t alone but walking alongside a woman.

“She is making her way to the capital,” Charles explains, “but she seems very tired. I don’t think we understand each other very well, but I did promise food and a seat near the fire.”

“Of course!” Rebecca doesn’t hesitate to usher the newcomer into the washroom and to provide her with dry clothes. Cas makes a bowl of stew for her and cuts a generous slice of their bread. When the woman returns, she appears to be calmer, so Cas approaches her.

“You’re very welcome here. This is stew,” he indicates the bowl. Unfortunately, it doesn’t seem like the woman has understood him. She says something, pointing at the dish in Cas’s hand and, suddenly, it makes sense. “Oh!” he says before he attempts what little High Mountain dialect he still remembers. It’s been a long time since one of the people from the mountain tribes has ventured into the plains land where Cas lives just outside of the capital.

The woman reacts immediately, lighting up with a smile. She begins speaking rapidly, too fast for Cas to catch it all. But he understands that she’s traveling, hungry, and grateful to have met his father on the road.

“It is in order,” he promises. “All is well.” The woman beams at him and pats his cheek before taking the bowl. The four of them sit at the table, drawn close to the fireplace for warmth.

:     :     :     :     :

The festival of the spring equinox has always been an especially lovely time of year. People string flowers and fruits all around the palace, the weather is perfect, and, best of all, there are so many new faces in the marketplace when Dean goes into town.

This time, however, Dean is going with his parents and Sam. They will be present to help decorate the Ostara altar in the center of town just like they do every year. The carriage rumbles along behind two beautiful horses, Mary and John are waving out of the windows while Sam fidgets between them. Dean sits opposite of them and simply takes in the view.

All of a sudden, he spots an extremely familiar boy in the people gathered in the streets and watching their approach. Dean’s heart drops into his stomach. The wonderful day he’d been having, his good mood, his general contentedness falls away quickly, leaving him feeling cold and anxious inside.

When they arrive at the fountain, there’s already a sizable crowd. Everyone adores his mom so it’s no surprise that so many people have come to see the altar decorations. They roll to a stop and John goes first, turning to offer Mary his hand in climbing out of the carriage. Sam bounces out and moves to stand at their mother’s side.

His dad is still standing by the carriage door, waiting for Dean to get a move on, but Dean is frozen with fear. They’re all dressed in perfect garb for Ostara, wearing the same pastel shades as the rest of the townspeople, but Cas doesn’t _know_ that this is his family and that they _are not_ regular townspeople. He didn’t tell him that first day because he didn’t want Cas to treat him differently, he just wanted the beautiful boy to like him without the crown.

John gestures impatiently at him. He can’t delay it any longer. Cas is about to find out who Dean really is and it’s not at all the way he’d intended for this to happen. He steps out slowly and, keeping his eyes on the ground, walks toward his mom and brother at the altar. Mary begins to speak to the people around them, shaking hands and waving hello. Sam copies her, if a bit more shyly, but Dean can’t bring himself to look around because what if he accidentally makes eye contact with Cas?

The ceremony ends without Dean even noticing. The candles have been lit, the garlands draped artfully across the altar, seeds and other symbols placed strategically around to inspire the coming season. The crowd begins to mingle and Dean and his family are meant to join them, to pair off with their personal guards and begin to walk through the crowd. Sam and Jody are immediately surrounded by young kids, even the littler ones—they seem to be curious about his crown. Jody’s great with them even when Sammy gets nervous.

Dean moves much more slowly, probably making Donna feel confused. In fact, she steps closer and puts a hand on his shoulder. He knows she’s being supportive but he can’t bring himself to explain quite yet. His eyes dart up and around before he can stop himself and that’s when it happens. He sees Cas and it’s so much worse than he’d thought because Cas’s eyes are fixed on Dean.

:     :     :     :     :

When Cas saw someone who looked like Dean in the royal family’s carriage, he finally allowed himself to admit that, yes, he had grown a small crush on him that day in the market. Such a “small” crush, in fact, that he was now hallucinating seeing Dean in random places.

But then, just a few minutes later, he realized it was most certainly Dean who exiting the carriage at the Ostara altar. That was Dean standing next to Her Majesty as she blessed the time of seasonal change. The whole ceremony flew right by Cas, he didn’t hear a word of it, only the blood rushing in his ears. It was surreal to see Dean standing there, so much the same and yet so very different from the boy Cas had met.

The moment Dean looks up at him, Cas is lost. He feels overwhelmed and even a little frightened because he doesn’t know how Dean will react. Dean is _royalty_ and Cas is a farmer’s son.

But Dean merely smiles. A tiny pull of his pink lips is all it takes to cut the tension around Cas’s heart. He relaxes, returning the smile, and waits to see what Dean will do next.

He takes a couple of steps toward Cas. He doesn’t make it obvious, though, allowing it to appear as if Dean is simply weaving through the crowd. Cas tries to copy him, holding his book and looking around casually.

Once Dean (and his bodyguard) are close enough, Cas says, “hello, your Highness.”

“Hello there,” Dean replies amiably. “How are you today?”

“I’m well, thank you. And you? It’s a beautiful day to decorate the altar.”

“Yes,” Dean says, “it’s been wonderful.” He pauses for a moment before asking, “what are you reading?”

Cas gestures with the book. “This?” Dean nods at him encouragingly, so Cas goes on to explain it all to him. It’s one of his favorites so he truly does know all of the best parts. While he talks, they turn to walk some more. They don’t go very far, at first, Cas does not want to risk straying too far from Dean’s family.

Then, suddenly, Dean turns to his bodyguard and whispers something to her. At her wink, Dean grabs Cas’s hand and pulls him around the side of a building.

“What—?” Cas says before Dean cups a hand over his mouth, shushing him.

“Donna’s gonna keep watch while we run off. You want to?” Dean’s eyes are sparkling and Cas couldn’t say no if he tried.

“Of course,” he breathes, squeezing Dean’s hand in his before they take off down the alley. They take another corner, giggling, and dash across the street to the woods. They stay clear of the path but keep it in sight for when they have to go back. Dean swears Donna will buy him around thirty minutes.

So, they continue to walk and they never drop each other’s hand. Cas feels his face get warm if he thinks about it for too long and tried to avoid doing that. He gets to tell Dean about the ending of the story, relishing the way that Dean is focused solely on him.

A minute later, he feels terrible about having distracted Dean so much when he hears a loud _thunk_ and Dean’s shouted curse.

Cas guides them to sit on a fallen log with Dean limping a bit even though he’s pretending like it didn’t hurt.

“I’m— _ouch—_ I’m fine, really. Not as bad as that time I broke my arm.” He tries to smile but it looks more like a grimace.

“Well, I find myself unable to accept your response,” Cas informs him, hoisting Dean’s foot up and into his lap. Dean makes a noise at being suddenly unbalanced but he doesn’t fight Cas’s hold. If anything, he relaxes into it. “Especially since you’re bleeding.”

“It’s not a big deal,” Dean mumbles. He won’t look at Cas, who waits for his gaze. He’s done some minor healing before. It can be strenuous so he avoids doing it at every opportunity. But there’s something about Dean that makes his heart skip frantically, therefore the idea that Dean is hurting right now makes him feel awful. Does he dare share his most private secret?

“Dean, I’m going to do something and you have to promise me that you won’t tell a single soul about this.” Green eyes lock on his, emotions flitting across Dean’s features, mainly confusion. “Do you trust me?”

Slowly, Dean nods.

Cas allows the swell of pure energy inside of him to rise. He cups Dean’s toes gently in his hand and closes his eyes in order to focus this _power_ into his palm. It’s almost like Dean’s toes and foot become an extension of himself—he can sense the pain in a way that goes beyond sight or tough, verging on an actual experience of it. Seeing blue-white light behind his eyelids, Cas soothes the (albeit minor) injury with the utmost care.

When it recedes, he hesitates to face Dean. What if he’s just scared him off for good? Finally convincing himself he needs to look, Cas is surprised by the awestruck expression on Dean’s face.

“Did—did you just, like, magically heal my toe?” he whispers, looking back down at his foot over and over again. Cas is pleased to see that the blood is gone from his nail bed and it’s no longer swelling. “Was that even real? Am I hallucinating?”

“I’ve been able to do that since I was a little boy,” Cas admits. “I saw a baby bird fall from its nest and I couldn’t just let him die. My hands glowed and the bird sat up in my hands before he flew away.” He shrugs. “I don’t do it often because, well, it’s a weird magic thing, and also it can make me really tired to try and heal a larger injury, for some reason.”

“Cas, are you a witch?” Dean asks in a serious voice, his eyes wide and solemn.

“I don’t think so, I don’t really know what I am. I don’t know why I can do that.” Cas shakes his head, frustrated once again by the fact that he cannot answer any of those questions no matter how often he thinks about them. “And I can’t tell my parents. They’re very old, you know, and I don’t want to worry them or scare them or anyone else. Promise me you’ll never tell?”

Dean moves his leg off of Cas’s lap and reaches for his hand again. “I promise.”

:     :     :     :     :

The dining hall in the palace is lavish and pristine. Only the sound of plates and goblets ring out in the cavernous room. Dean glances at his mother, seated at the head of the table. She eats with the same expression he normally sees in her face, which is to say she appears emotionless. A matriarch, a ruler, a leader, she is tough, cunning, and stern.

Dean loves her still. He knows she’s hard on him because he’ll take over the throne one day. He knows how much responsibility there is to bear but he wishes that she would smile more. She used to smile often when he was a boy. But in the past three years or so, things haven’t been the same.

He decides to try and lighten the room by telling a story about tricking his math tutor into getting herself locked outside on his balcony. It makes his father and Sammy laugh, at least.

Suddenly, the door behind Dean bursts open and Jody rushes to his mother’s side.

“Your Highness,” she says, lifting her hand to smooth down her short, dark hair. “I am sorry to interrupt, but an envoy from Heaven has arrived.”

 _“What?”_ Mary’s face twists through shock, anger, and disbelief so quickly that Dean can hardly follow. Jody can only nod.

“You are needed in the throne room,” she says.

“Of course. John, would you stay with the boys?” Mary turns to him.

As Dean watches, his father’s face melts with a sort of concern he doesn’t understand. “Anything you need.” When she smiles back at him, Dean looks at Sam in surprise. His brother looks just as confused as he feels. His mother hurries out of the room after Jody, and the room descends into silence.

“Um, excuse me?” Dean can’t help but break it. “What in the world is going on? Who is here from Heaven?”

“What’s going on with mom? Who are the people from Heaven? I read about them in a book, are they really angels? Why are they visiting us? Is everything okay?” Sam continues to shout his questions at their father.

“Dad, what is happening?” Dean asks in a low voice. He catches a glance from his father filled with so much emotion that it makes his spine shiver.

“We are not going to discuss it at the moment. We are going to stay right here until your mother returns or sends for us. Finish eating.” John points at their dishes and goes back to his own meal. Sam and Dean look at each other with matching gaping mouths.

“I don’t think so!” Sam exclaims. But their father has clearly made up his mind. He doesn’t say another word. When Sam tries to leave the table, Bobby appears and guides him back to his seat. Neither he or John will say anything, only making meaningful eye contact that Dean can’t interpret. He resigns himself to wait it out, moodily eating his potatoes.

When they’ve finished eating, to his surprise, Dean and Sam are sent to bed despite the fact that it’s barely past midday. They’re escorted upstairs and guards are stationed outside their doors and everything! Something big must be happening. Dean argues with himself about escaping down his balcony, but in the end, he figures whatever his mother and “Heaven” are doing downstairs must be really significant.

He passes the time moving from one distraction to another. He tries reading, drawing, and just sitting on his balcony enjoying the dusk before he decides to take a bath. After the hot water is drawn, he sits in his tub for a long while. It’s meditative, listening to the wind and feeling his muscles relax.

Then comes a series of knocks on the door of his bedchamber.

“Dean?” His mother calls to him. “I know you’re bathing, but when you’re finished, please come and open the door. We need to speak with you.”

He scrambles to dress himself, opting for simple linens and no shoes before he opens the door to reveal his parents. He’s concerned by their smiles as they walk past him into the room.

“So, um, what’s happened?”

John and Mary sit down at the end of his bed and look at each other. His father speaks first. “Dean, what do you know of Heaven?”

“I had the same lessons that Sammy did. The citizens are angels and they have an impressive military and textile manufacturing industry. We often trade with them. Things have been tense lately,” Dean summarizes. “Why were they here today?”

“Dean,” his mother says, “things have only been tense for the past year and a half or so. We’ve kept the reason why completely hidden from you and your brother, and the public only knows what we’ve decided to share.” Dean looks back at them as clueless as ever. “It’s…a personal matter. To this family.”

“We’ve never pushed you to marry,” John continues. “We’ve never sent for suitors to come and meet you. We had had an agreement with the ruling family in Heaven. They had a son, too, he’s four months older than you, in line for the throne after his mother, Anael.” Dean feels strong emotions warring inside him hearing the details of a story he’d never known. “He… Your betrothed was meant to come to Lawrence on his seventeenth birthday. We wanted you to meet here in order to spend time together and to marry when you both came of age.”

“It would have brought prosperity and honor to both of our kingdoms,” Mary explains. Dean can’t speak. He turned eighteen last month, so that means…? “But Heaven never sent him to us. We’ve had no word from them for years now.”

“I don’t understand,” Dean says breathlessly. That’s a vast understatement, of course, but he’s trying to keep it together. He’s _betrothed?_ To an _angel prince?_

“I’m having trouble with it myself,” his mother says in what’s supposed to be a reassuring tone. “Because they’re telling me that they _lost_ your betrothed.” Mary scoffs. “It’s completely absurd. They told me the young prince was kidnapped by his mother _years_ ago when she fled the kingdom, something about treason. They never informed us because they had been searching for him for years, and now they think they’ve found him. He’s here, in Lawrence, they’re saying.”

“Dean, we don’t necessarily know what will happen next,” his father says, reaching for his hand. “If his mother committed treason, should we still go through the marriage? They lied to us for years on top of that about the disappearance. What happens if they find the prince here? How long has he been living in our kingdom? Where has he been and what has he been doing all these years? What does he know? There are so many questions that don’t have answers right now.”

“But we thought it best to tell you what has already happened,” Mary says. “We wanted you to have time to think about all of this. I suspect we’ll hear from the angels again very soon. Their leader seemed _very_ determined to locate the prince.”

“He had a funny name, didn’t he?” John muses. He glances at Mary. “What was it, again?”

“Castiel,” she says, “his name is Castiel.”

:     :     :     :     :

Cas looks up from his work, planting in the fields, to admire the sun as it slowly makes its way to the horizon. The sky remains blue but for a smattering of orange-colored clouds. Then, he notices some white clouds, fluffy and surprisingly low. As he stands there watching, the white clouds begin to move at an alarming pace.

Soon, he realizes they aren’t clouds at all but huge feathered wings. For a moment, Cas feels a sense of deja vu wash over him. But it’s scary, terrifying, even, to watch these creatures coming toward him and his parents’ house so quickly. He looks around himself; he’s much too far to run home and there is no place to hide. It seems he’ll be making his last stand with nothing but a hoe in his hands and his father’s straw hat on his head.

Gripping the tool in both hands, Cas stands his ground as the _people with wings_ land just in front of him. Several them twist and look around them, taking in the fields that belong to Cas’s parents, the road, and the river and the woods just beyond that. But there’s a woman at the front of the group with reddish hair and a look on her face that makes Cas feel uneasy.

Without taking her eyes off of him, she points in order to direct the other, uh, flying people who head off in several directions. Three of them head toward Cas’s house and his whole body goes cold.

“Hey,” he says in the loudest and deepest voice he can manage. “What do you want?”

The woman ignores his question. She walks toward him slowly, eyes passing over his arms and legs and his face. As she moves to one side, Cas turns his body around stiffly in order to accommodate. He doesn’t want to turn his back on this…this _thing._

“At long last!” she cries, clapping her hands together.

“Let's start over,” Cas says. He’s wary, so he keeps his face neutral. “Hello. Who are you and what are you doing here?”

She tilts her head to one shoulder, looking curiously at him. When he says nothing, she frowns. "Do you have any idea who I am, child?" He doesn’t know how to respond, so he chooses not to. “I thought so. That wretched, twisted fool did this to you, didn’t she? No matter.”

“Still don’t know what you’re talking about,” Cas says more confidently than he actually feels.

“Stolen from your home and brought to this strange new land. Forced to live among these humans, never taking part in the greater plan for your life. You were the key and she knew that. Treasonous, poisonous witch,” the woman spits. Cas has never felt so confused before. What in the world is she ranting about now?

He is so focused on the weirdness in front of him that the sound of hoofbeats approaching takes him by surprise. With his back to the road, Cas can’t see who has just left the path and is heading straight for them. He can only hope they’re a friend.

“Cas! Cas!”

That’s Dean shouting his name, his horse slowing to a stop just behind Cas. Dean leaps to the ground and makes his way to Cas’s side, filling him with a bizarre mixture of relief and fear. “What’s going on here?”

“Who are _you?”_ The woman narrows her eyes at Dean, her posture tensing.

“Only a friendly neighbor,” Dean quips. He takes Cas’s sleeve between his fingers as if to tug him away. “Sorry to leave so soon, just need to borrow him for a minute.”

“You should get out of here,” Cas whispers. “I don’t know what she wants yet and I don’t want you getting hurt.”

“No way, Cas,” Dean replies. “I ain’t leaving you behind with this angel.”

“That’s an _angel?”_

“Fascinating,” she remarks. Cas is growing tired of her talking about him instead of answering any questions. “You truly remember nothing.”

“Since you’re not from around here and I don’t exactly get out much, I’m not exactly sure what you mean by that,” Cas says, trying not to sound too annoyed so he doesn’t get attacked.

“What a strange thing you are,” she croons at him and he rolls his eyes. “To believe all your life that you are not who you truly are.” Cas feels Dean tense up beside him and he wishes he could let go of his only available weapon in order to take his hand.

“What are you _talking_ about? I’m nobody. I’m just Cas.” He gestures to himself, his handmade clothing and worn out shoes and all.

“Our family is _royalty,_ you ignorant little boy.” Her enormous wings bristle. The appendages seem to convey emotion just as well as facial expressions and body language, though Cas hasn’t the slightest clue where he would’ve learned how to interpret something like that. “Your mother was next in line for the throne. The firstborn princess and the jewel of our father’s kingdom. But she turned her back on us.”

“Can’t say that I blame her,” Dean mutters.

The angel turns a sharp eye on Dean. “Watch your mouth, human. I could destroy you without exertion.”

Cas moves slightly to put himself between the obvious threat and Dean. “You’re angry with me, try and stick to that. Are you saying that I’m related to you…angels?”

She laughs at him, then, and it’s so cold and hateful Cas wonders if she’s ever truly laughed with joy before. “I can’t believe she thought she was protecting you. My only thought in the past fifteen _years_ was finding you.”

“Sounds like you need a hobby, lady,” Dean replies. Cas feels his mouth quirk but the danger flashing in her eyes frightens him.

“My _name_ is Naomi, and you would do well to show me some respect,” she says.

 _Naomi. Why does that sound familiar?_ Cas feels like a headache is coming on right behind his eyes. There’s something he’s not getting yet.

“And why would I do that?” Cas says bravely.

She smiles cruelly at him. “I’m your aunt, Castiel.” Then, she moves quickly toward him, her hand glowing blue-white. Suddenly, Cas’s ears are ringing loudly. He feels Dean grab his arms but he can’t respond, he just clutches his head. Images flash through his mind rapidly. He sees a city nestled in the clouds. A red-haired woman looks down at him with a smile. There are small angels around him, playing games and running around a grassy meadow with him. He sees a courtyard made of stone, a group of adult angels standing alone and whispering. The same red-haired woman cries, rocking him gently. Then they’re running, falling, tumbling.

Cas gasps, taking a deep breath into his lungs. His eyes and ears are burning and at some point, he sank to the ground. Dean is still on his feet, crouched over him and partially shielding him from Naomi.

“Naomi,” he says. “You—I—”

“She never should have taken you from us. She never should have tried to run,” Naomi says.

“What did you do?” His heart is in his throat. That was his mother he saw, she tried to protect him when she ran from Heaven.

“Treason is punishable by death,” Naomi replies coldly. “She went against our plans, she betrayed us all.” Cas remains on the ground, stunned into silence. “We had planned this carefully. Chosen a powerful ally with a suitable option for you to wed. The killing would’ve been quick and simple, and then, our power supreme.” Where Dean had been fiercely protective, he now seems scared. Cas can’t see his face but his whole body seems to shiver. “But precious _Anael,”_ Naomi continues, “decided she didn’t want to support our family. To follow orders. I know you will do better, Castiel.”

“Yeah, not sure where you got an idea like that,” Cas manages. He takes Dean’s hand and gets to his feet. He squeezes Dean’s fingers once before letting go, picking up the hoe he’d dropped in case he needs to defend the two of them. “I won’t be going anywhere with you and I certainly won’t be doing any killing.”

“But your betrothed awaits, Castiel.” Naomi’s voice takes on a mocking tone. “I’m told the family was just _devastated_ when we didn’t deliver you as promised. But we assured them we would find you here and so we did. These foolish humans who hid you from us will be disposed of and you will go to the Winchesters and we will finally make this right.”

Cas freezes. His mind works quickly trying to connect all of the dots. His mother, Anael, he remembers her now. They had run when Cas was just four, they fled to Lawrence and hid. He vaguely remembers when his mother introduced him to Charles and Rebecca, but it’s hazy. She must have tampered with his memory so that he could be safely hidden. But Naomi’s just said _the Winchesters._ His head is aching. Cas’s memory of the palace in Heaven has returned. He was royalty. His betrothed would be a member of the Lawrencian royal family. His betrothed was… _Dean?_

Dean, for his part, looks tense but focused. He’s staring at Naomi with his brows furrowed and jaw clenched. He’s ready to fight. But maybe…

“You’re right, Naomi.” Cas lets his arms go slack, lowering his makeshift weapon. “I remember everything now.” Dean turns to look at him with utter confusion on his face.

“Good. I’m glad to hear it,” Naomi says. “We shall go, then.”

“Cas,” Dean whispers, “what are you doing?”

Cas responds at a normal volume. “I’m going home, _neighbor,_ and you should do the same.” Dean looks completely nonplussed and Cas fights a groan. “You ought to leave. And forget about everything you’ve heard.”

“A wise choice.” Naomi nods. “Perhaps I will wipe his memories just in case—”

 _“No,”_ Cas all but shouts. “No, uh, don’t bother. He’s just a peasant like the family my mother left me with, he won’t cause any problems.”

Naomi eyes the pair of them but she doesn’t argue. “When the others return, we will depart.” No sooner had the words left her mouth than the other angels popped in existence next to her. Cas knows he’s out of time. He looks at Dean, holding his gaze with as much confidence as he can muster. He knows his plan will work, he just needs for Dean to trust him. He turns in order to walk backward toward the small group of angels.

 _Do you trust me?_ he mouths as clearly as he can. Dean’s eyes flit to his lips and they widen with understanding. He looks up at Cas, his features transformed from terrified to trusting, and Cas allows himself to be pulled away.

:     :     :     :     :

A week later, Dean hasn’t heard from Cas at all. His mother hasn’t heard back from the angels and she’s getting upset, too.

That is until their first meal that was interrupted by angels is repeated. Leaving their breakfasts scattered on the table, Dean’s parents leave for the throne room. Not willing to stay put this time, Dean sneaks out to the hallway where he knows he can eavesdrop.

A voice he’s certain is Naomi’s echoes in the large room. She informs John and Mary that they were able to locate the lost prince and to bring him home. They’ve been celebrating his return to Heaven these past few days but they are prepared to move forward with the wedding and the treaty negotiations. All Dean can think about is Cas. Is he all right? Is he here?

“Dean.” The whisper comes from Dean’s shoulder, thanks to Sam squishing himself into the same hiding spot as Dean. “I just heard Jody and Donna looking for you. You’ve gotta go in there with them. That’s your wedding they’re talking about!”

“But I don’t know the first thing about angels,” Dean says. “How do we know what they’re planning?”

“But what if it’s a good thing? Like a happy ever after?” Sam wonders. Biting his lip, Dean sends a silent prayer to the only angel he cares to have listening.

He slips back into the dining room just as Donna comes in to find him. She escorts him to the throne room, clearly holding back a thousand questions. Dean’s stomach twists itself spectacularly, hope and fear and concern brimming inside him. He dislikes not knowing what will happen next. He only knows that Cas asked for his trust and he will see that promise through.

As he expected, Naomi stands before his parents’ thrones, her wings poised high and her back straight. A large group of angels stands behind and beside her, some carrying wide banners. He worries that she might say something and give away their previous meeting, but she doesn’t seem to react to seeing him again. He hadn’t been wearing his crown or this fine of clothing, but he hadn’t realized he looked quite so different in the disguises he wore into town.

“Prince Winchester,” Naomi addresses him. “I am Naomi of the kingdom of the Heaven. I have been the interim leader of our people during the unfortunate absence of our true heir. Now that he has been returned, we should like to reinstate the proposal that your family agreed to in your youth.”

“Dean,” John says to him. “Come here, my son.” Dean goes to his father’s side immediately, his heart fluttering in his throat. “They’ve brought their prince Castiel to meet you. They say he insisted that you two meet face-to-face in order to decide whether…”

“Yes,” Dean agrees breathlessly. “I want to meet him.” _This is it._

Mary looks at him in confusion but she nods. “Naomi, please make the introductions.”

The crowd of angels behind Naomi shuffles. As she turns to face him, _Castiel_ appears from the middle of the group. He looks so different from the last time Dean saw him that Dean almost has to sit down. Castiel is draped in long blue and white robes, his dark hair immaculately combed and styled with a golden crown on his head. But the most disturbing difference is the aloof and almost cold composure of his face. Dean doesn’t see the twinkling blue eyes that he’d begun to love and it hurts.

“This is Castiel,” Naomi is saying. “My nephew, grandson of Michael, and of Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel before him. High Priest of the Seraphim and Commander of all garrisons of Heaven. He will be a worthy husband and your union will represent absolute power in the region for many years.”

By the time Naomi finishes her speech, Castiel has reached the bottom of the stairs. Dean watches him as he comes down the stairs, wanting to search for a glimpse of that wild boy who met him at the Ostara festival and saved him from a bustling marketplace before that.

He reaches Castiel but stands apart from him, uncertain of what might happen next. Then, Castiel reaches for Dean’s hand. In the blink of an eye, _Cas_ is smiling at Dean, a small and private smile that only grows when Dean winds their fingers together.

“Your Highness,” he says, “it is an honor.”

“Likewise, Prince Castiel,” Dean replies.

“Do you find this agreeable?” Cas asks him, his gaze intense and full of trust.

Dean doesn’t look at his parents or at Naomi when he says yes.

He doesn’t doubt Cas for a single moment, not through any of the contract negotiations they endure, not when Cas requests that they live together in Lawrence for the first year of their marriage, and not when Cas insists on wearing traditional Lawrencian outfits for the wedding.

They are never allowed a single moment alone together. All Dean has are their longing gazes, the way Cas cradles his hands, the brush of Cas’s fingers against his cheek, and kisses placed on each other’s palms and knuckles. Naomi says they’re inappropriate but he couldn’t care less. Sam thinks he’s insane but he can’t think like that right now. He has to remember the way that Cas looked at him and pleaded, _trust me._

And so the ceremony passes without a hitch, the whole of Lawrence is there to see them. The sizable crowd from Heaven makes no attempt to blend in and there’s one angel among them, Hannah, who helps Cas bring his wings into the physical plane. It happened a few days prior to the wedding but Dean hasn’t gotten over the sight of them. Cas’s wings are _gorgeous,_ black as night and powerful-looking.

One thing both of their countries seem to agree on is that a wedding requires food and drink to celebrate. Long into the night, Dean and Cas are forced to sit at the high table and greet all of their well-wishers. Dean is on edge for hours, worried that something may happen.

To his great joy, they are finally dismissed to retire to bed without any concerns. It’s Cas who takes his hand again and walks purposefully to their bedchambers. There are bodyguards in the hallway but no one will disturb them until morning and Dean’s whole body is painfully tense with all of the emotions of these past few weeks.

When the door shuts, silence grows heavy between them. Cas doesn’t look at him at first, simply peering around the room. He goes to look out the windows, pulling the drapes shut as he walks. He looks into every corner of the rooms and returns to Dean, still standing by the door, with a calm smile on his face.

“Hello, Dean,” he says, and Dean wants to kick him. He's close enough to touch and still so far away.

“Hi, Castiel.”

“I wish you would call me Cas again,” Cas admits and Dean feels the spark of hope grow into a flame.

“You seemed so different when Naomi introduced you. When we decided to do this.” He looks down at his left hand. “I’ve been worried.”

“I know,” Cas says and his voice, for the first time, breaks with emotion. He takes one step closer and touches Dean's robes with gentle fingers. Dean responds to it, drawn to Cas like a flower to the sunshine. He leans forward until their foreheads touch, then moving his own to one side, nuzzling at the side of Cas's face and down to his neck. Cas continues talking and Dean feels the vibrations down to his toes. “I am so sorry that you have been in the dark. I truly didn’t know how I could communicate with you. I am very grateful that you, for whatever reason, trusted me.”

Dean lifts his head from Cas's neck and he takes Cas’s fingers in his carefully, walking backward toward the bed. Their bed. “Tell me everything,” he asks. “Tell me I’m not crazy and then kiss me until I am.”

They crawl up the mattress to find the pillows, tucking the linens in around themselves. Dean curls himself against Cas, feeling his strong chest against his own. He removes his own crown and Cas follows his lead. Then, following Dean’s instructions, Cas begins to talk. He explains that he knew they couldn’t fight back against Naomi, not standing there in that field. No, he realized, it would be a far better idea to fight back from the inside. So, he pretended to go along with everything she said. He quickly fell into the role of the poor little kidnapped prince who finally came home and was ready to do anything the angels wanted him to do. Cas learned about Naomi and the whole council and their plan to usurp Lawrence through the treaty negotiations.

But Cas also learned about the resistance groups in Heaven, the angels who did not wish to cause human suffering. He played the double agent, always pretending to follow Naomi’s orders when instead he was ensuring no one could harm Dean or his family, and he’s kept an eye on Charles and Rebecca’s safety as well.

He has all the support he needs from Heaven so that, when the throne is fully his at the time of his grandfather’s abdication, he can take control from Naomi and the corrupt factions and prioritize peace and well-being. Unifying Lawrence and Heaven will bring significant economic gain and, he points out with a grin, two castles are better than one.

By the time Cas finishes his explanation, he’s relaxed against one of the pillows and running one hand through Dean’s hair. Dean had moved his head to lie on Cas’s chest as he listened, both to Cas’s words and to his heartbeat. Now, Dean presses Cas’s other hand to his lips, finding his tanned skin irresistible.

“You’ve done so much. And so few people have any idea what you’ve been able to accomplish,” he says.

“Yes,” Cas says, finally leaning down to kiss Dean. It is a soft and wondrous thing to be embraced like this, to have Cas so close and warm and _real_  beneath him. “But most importantly, I got to marry you. I get to keep you safe. I want to keep doing that.”

“I couldn’t agree more, husband.” Dean winds his other hand around Cas’s neck to kiss him, grateful and proud and impressed. They kiss for a long time lying side by side. Dean holds him tightly and finds that he doesn’t want to let go.

Eventually, they grow tired and fall asleep together. They will wake to their first day as husbands with boundless joy, knowing that they have truly gained everything by trusting one another. They will rise in order to begin writing the rest of their story. There is so much they still have to do.

And they’ll live happily ever after.

**Author's Note:**

> SPOILERS: When we meet Cas, he's just met Prince Dean who has escaped from the palace in town (think Aladdin here) except he doesn't know who Dean is. Then, you may find yourself wondering if Cas really knows who HE is. (Hint: he doesn't.) We find out that Dean had been betrothed to the prince of the angels' kingdom but the boy went missing... An angel Naomi comes to Dean's lands and she is on the prowl. Who does she track down but Cas! Cas is Castiel, their missing prince, but Naomi's motives are sinister. Cas pretends to go along with her schemes, including marrying Dean ("do you trust me?") and once their kingdoms have been united, they can take a stand against the forces of evil, and true love will save the day.
> 
> [on tumblr](http://profound-boning.tumblr.com/post/183958185496/)


End file.
